Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. Invests $5.98 Million in Freshpet, Inc. $FRPT

Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. acquired a new stake in Freshpet, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRPT) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 101,094 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,977,000. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. owned approximately 0.21% of Freshpet as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of FRPT. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Freshpet by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,281,833 shares of the company’s stock worth $321,822,000 after purchasing an additional 128,499 shares during the period. Wasatch Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Freshpet by 5.2% during the first quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 4,141,437 shares of the company’s stock valued at $244,179,000 after purchasing an additional 204,128 shares during the period. William Blair Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Freshpet by 30.9% during the 4th quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 1,952,767 shares of the company’s stock worth $118,982,000 after purchasing an additional 461,444 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors boosted its position in shares of Freshpet by 7.1% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 1,587,691 shares of the company’s stock worth $96,738,000 after purchasing an additional 104,913 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Armistice Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Freshpet by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. Armistice Capital LLC now owns 1,296,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $78,965,000 after buying an additional 61,198 shares during the period.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FRPT has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen raised Freshpet from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, August 2nd. Morgan Stanley reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $72.00 price objective (down from $77.00) on shares of Freshpet in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Bank of America decreased their price objective on Freshpet from $75.00 to $70.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Freshpet from $68.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Freshpet from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Freshpet presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $75.31.

Insider Buying and Selling at Freshpet

In other news, CEO William B. Cyr sold 41,022 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.86, for a total value of $2,988,862.92. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 267,152 shares in the company, valued at $19,464,694.72. This trade represents a 13.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 4.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Freshpet Trading Down 0.2%

NASDAQ:FRPT opened at $73.96 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 6.05 and a quick ratio of 5.03. Freshpet, Inc. has a one year low of $46.45 and a one year high of $86.00. The company has a market cap of $3.63 billion, a PE ratio of 19.46 and a beta of 1.61. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $60.58 and a 200-day moving average of $62.78.

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $0.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.22 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $305.59 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $292.35 million. Freshpet had a net margin of 17.28% and a return on equity of 5.97%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.33 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Freshpet, Inc. will post 1.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Freshpet

Freshpet Inc (NASDAQ: FRPT) is a leading pet food company specializing in fresh, refrigerated meals and treats for dogs and cats. The company’s products are formulated with carefully selected, natural ingredients and are designed to offer a higher level of nutrition and freshness than traditional dry or canned pet foods. Freshpet’s offerings include refrigerated rolls, pâtés and snacks, all of which are sold through the refrigerated section of grocery, mass-market and pet specialty stores.

Freshpet’s product portfolio is built around the concept of fresh, minimally processed recipes that do not require preservatives or artificial colors.